Washington – September 12, 2025The U.S. Department of the Treasury, through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), announced sanctions on Sudanese Islamist figures and entities, including Finance Minister and leader of the Justice and Equality Movement, Jibril Ibrahim Mohamed Fadil, as well as the Al-Baraa ibn Malik Militia (BBMB), citing their role in Sudan’s civil war and their growing ties with Iran.The Treasury said the move aims to curtail the influence of Islamists in Sudan and disrupt Iranian activities that have fueled conflicts and destabilized the region.John K. Hurley, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, stated that Sudanese Islamist groups had forged “dangerous” alliances with the Iranian regime, stressing that Washington would not allow them to threaten regional and global security. He added that the new sanctions employ “powerful tools to disrupt this activity and protect U.S. national security.”The statement noted that Sudanese Islamists played key roles in undermining the democratic transition following the fall of Omar al-Bashir’s regime in 2019, and fueled fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces since April 2023 — a conflict that has killed nearly 150,000 people and displaced over 14 million, in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.According to the Treasury, Jibril Ibrahim, through the Justice and Equality Movement, took part in fighting against the Rapid Support Forces, causing widespread destruction and the displacement of thousands of civilians, while also seeking to strengthen cooperation with Tehran, which he visited last November. As for the Al-Baraa ibn Malik Militia, with roots in the Popular Defense Forces under Bashir, it deployed more than 20,000 fighters with Iranian support, training, and weaponry, and committed grave abuses including arbitrary detentions, torture, and summary executions.The designation was made under Executive Order 14098, which authorizes sanctions on persons and entities involved in threatening peace and stability in Sudan or obstructing its democratic transition.
